


It Looks Worse Than it Is

by vcg73



Category: Glee
Genre: Episode "Bash", Gen, Kadam Friendship, Missing Scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-10
Updated: 2018-03-10
Packaged: 2019-03-29 07:58:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,360
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13922790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vcg73/pseuds/vcg73
Summary: Still recovering from his alleyway bashing (episode "Bash"), Kurt runs into an old friend.





	It Looks Worse Than it Is

“Hello, Kurt.”

Kurt stopped and turned at the unexpected address. He had been walking and shuffling through his shoulder bag at the same time, trying to find his metro card, and it was clear that a British-accented blast from the past had been the last thing he had expected.

“Adam!” he exclaimed, not even stopping to think about whether it was an appropriate thing to do or not as he stepped forward and caught the other man in a one-armed hug. “What are you doing here?”

Adam hugged him back very gently, afraid of hurting him. “I may have graduated but I still speak with the Apples now and again, you know. Your recent bout of heroism is the talk of the campus, but it looks like it was a rather costly effort.”

Kurt pulled back, ducking his head at the implied admiration. “It looks worse than it actually is,” he said, gesturing at his still-bruised face.

“I doubt that. I heard you were in hospital for two full days with a head injury.”

Raising a hand to touch the still tender area, Kurt tried to joke, “Yeah, a couple of guys heard this rumor that I’d make a fantastic Brick and misunderstood, I guess.”

“That’s not funny,” Adam protested, appalled. Instead of apologizing, a sparkle of mischief grew in Kurt’s bruised eyes, which finally drew a reluctant laugh from Adam. “You’re terrible. I don’t recall your sense of humor being so morbid.”

“Sometimes it is,” he said with a small shrug. “I’m told it’s a coping mechanism. Better bad jokes than pointless tears, right? And I honestly don’t feel that bad anymore. I saved someone from being injured or maybe even killed, and I won my self-respect back in the process. That makes up for a lot of bruises.”

They began walking wordlessly toward the subway station, the action as synchronized as if they still did it every day. When they were dating and both living in Brooklyn, it had become a habit to ride the train together every day that their after-class schedules would allow.

“You’d lost your self-respect?” Adam said quietly after a few minutes, having debated with himself about the appropriateness of the question and decided that he could not let it pass.

Kurt hesitated, then nodded. “It’s hard to respect yourself when it seems like no one else does.”

“Not even your fiance?” Adam managed to say the word without bitterness.

“He loves me,” Kurt said automatically, then he sighed. “He does love me but I’m not always certain that he respects me. We tried living together after he moved to New York and it didn’t work out so well, especially since he managed to get permission from the Dean to share nearly all of my classes. We’ve decided to try separate homes for now, give both of us a chance to get comfortable with each other again. Give us a little room to breathe.”

“Oh.”

Kurt frowned. “What does that mean?”

“I don’t want it to sound as if I’m interfering,” Adam explained. “Particularly given our history.”

“Say it anyway,” Kurt near-demanded.

Adam shrugged. “If you feel smothered and unable to live with him at this stage, then how are you ever going to tolerate married life? This is the sort of thing most couples discover before they become engaged, not a problem they assume that a wedding vow is going to fix.”

“We … it’s not like that. I know we have some things to work out but… I don’t know, okay?” Kurt said, clearly frustrated. After walking in a sulky silence for a couple of minutes to the subway platform he softly admitted, “I’ve been asking myself the same thing and I don’t have a good answer. Last spring I thought I knew what I wanted and I could be okay with everything, but lately I just don’t feel sure anymore. All those hours recovering from this gave me a lot of time to think, but now I seem to have more questions than answers.”

“Well, today does not have to be the day you find all of those answers,” Adam told him kindly as their train arrived, seeing that Kurt was getting upset and not wanting to provoke him to a scene in public, something he knew Kurt would hate. He clearly did not need more stress at this juncture. “We may have parted awkwardly, but I still think of you as one of the best friends I’ve ever had. If you’d like to talk about any of this later, or go with me to enjoy a silly movie and forget your troubles, or perhaps gain a workout buddy while you take out your frustrations in exercise, you should know that I’m still no farther than a phone call away.”

“You mean that, don’t you?” Kurt asked in wonder. Adam nodded and abruptly Kurt’s solemn mood seemed to pop like a balloon. He laughed, giving Adam another light hug. “Be warned, I will probably take you up on all of those things sooner or later. Just give me a couple of weeks to be able to move without wincing and I’ll take you up on that workout buddy promise. I’ve been intending to start a more intense exercise regimen just to keep up with this year’s crazy NYADA schedule. It would be so great to have a friend to share it with.”

Adam smiled back. “Excellent, and don’t worry. I know the limits set by your current relationship. I promise I won’t abuse my position and try to seduce you or anything of that sort.”

He meant it as a joke, but was he imagining the trace of disappointment that came into Kurt’s eyes? Oh surely he must be. 

He changed the subject to some light nonsense, talking about his most recent audition and hearing all about the latest antics of Kurt’s friends and the progress of a band he had started.

Kurt seemed to appreciate that he was not being pushed to talk about his recent ordeal, relaxing bit by bit until the train finally reached his stop.

“Oh, darn I have to go,” he apologized, gathering his belongings as the conveyance began to slow. “Adam, I’m so glad you stopped me today. I’ve really missed you. We may not have worked out as lovers but I would love to be friends again.”

“So would I,” Adam said, suppressing a pang of sadness along with the deeper feelings for this man that unfortunately refused to die. “I’ve missed you too, very much.”

As Kurt turned towards the opening door, he looked back over his shoulder. “I don’t suppose you’d like to come over for dinner this Monday. You can meet Blaine and my other high school friends who’ve moved to New York. Or, if that’s awkward, maybe you can come to Callbacks a week from Friday to see my band.”

Adam smiled. “You know I’d never let pass an opportunity to hear you sing. Text me the details when it’s closer.”

He did not mention dinner at all, not sure he could hide his true feelings if he were to meet Blaine Anderson. The Apples still going to NYADA had told him a few stories about the infamous fiance and from their descriptions of his behavior there Adam was even less impressed than before. 

Kurt seemed to understand his reluctance, though presumably not the reason for it. “Sure, that’d be great,” he said, unconsciously echoing the words Adam had spoken the day Kurt had asked him out for their first date, as he departed the train with a wave. “Talk to you soon, Adam.”

The reminder pulled at Adam’s heart, as did the determined way Kurt straightened his posture and lifted his bruised face as he walked off the platform, unwilling to let anyone look at his bruises and see him as weak.

If friendship was the best he could hope for, Adam would take it gladly. And he would face that future, as full of heartache as it would probably be, as bravely as Kurt faced the world.

Kurt Hummel would never deserve anything less than the best.

THE END


End file.
